Dear BCA Family,

We’ve been talking about faith in our teaching series Faith Factor: 6 Factors in Building Your Faith. These factors are Dream, Decision, Delay, Difficulty, Dead-end, and Deliverance. As you can see, delay is a part of this process. God uses delays to test you. The Bible teaches this all through Scripture. Abraham waited 90 years before he had a son. Noah waited 120 years before it rained. Joseph waited years in prison before he was released and made ruler. David waited years to become the king of Israel. Joshua waited 7 days for the walls of Jericho to fall. Delays are a test of faith.

The classic example of waiting in the Bible is the story of the "Exodus." It was only a couple of weeks' journey from Egypt to Israel, but it took the Israelites 40 years to make the trip. Talk about delay! However, God had a purpose – a design – in this extended camping trip. God used these 40 years to prepare them. Exodus 13:17—When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, "if they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt." God said they weren't ready to face war, so it took them 40 years to go nowhere. The delay was also meant to test the Israelites. Deut. 8:2--…God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.

The only problem was that the Israelites flunked the test. Only two of the original group, Joshua and Caleb, were able to actually enter the Promised Land. The rest of them died in desert. Their attitudes of unbelief – or lack of faith – were a deciding factor. We can learn from the 4 things that they should not have done.

1. DON’T FEAR.
Deut. 1:26,28 (GN)—…they would not enter the land. They said… "We are afraid…the people there are stronger and taller than we are…"

Fear instead of faith was their first mistake. Now there are two problems with fear: #1—it keeps you in the wilderness, and #2—it prolongs the delay. They could have gone into the Promised Land … they could have reached their dreams in just a matter of weeks. Instead, they delayed because they were afraid. How many dreams in your life have been put off because you were afraid to set out on them? Fear is Faith in reverse. Instead of fearing, realize that God is with you. Isaiah 41:10(LB)—Fear not, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed. I am your God. I will strengthen you and I will help you…and uphold you…

If you’re in delay, realize that you’re not alone. You can count on God. There are 365 "fear nots" in the Bible, and they are there for a reason. God says, "Get the message…don’t be afraid. The answer to your prayer is coming. Don’t fear." So hold on…God hasn’t forgotten you.

2. DON’T FRET.
Numbers 21:4,5(GN)—On the way the people lost their patience and they spoke against God and Moses. They complained…

In spite of all that God had done for them, the Israelites fretted. They complained about the delay. They complained about the food, water, leadership, and difficulties. I wonder how many times Moses had to answer the question, "Are we there yet?" It's easy to point a finger at them for their complaining, but be honest. How many find it easier to wait if you can gripe while you wait? For example, when we’re in traffic…waiting in the doctor’s office… waiting in line…yes, we like to fret. But God says, "Don’t fear…don’t fret. Don't worry, get uptight, start complaining, gripe, groan, or mumble." Proverbs 19:2(GN)—Impatience will get you into trouble. The most fruitless thing to do is to try to get God to be in a hurry.

Abraham did this. God had said He was going to give Abram a son, and at 80 years old his wife Sarai hadn’t borne one yet. So Abe said, "I’ve got an idea." He decided to take Sarai’s Egyptian handmaiden and have a child by her, which was the custom of the day. It was a dumb decision. He had a son named Ishmael with Hagar, and the son did become a great nation. But God said, "He’s not going to be the nation I told you I was going to give you. That’s Isaac, the miracle child." It’s interesting--Ishmael is the father of all Arab nations, and Isaac is the father of the Jewish nation. When it all boils down, they are fighting over the inheritance of land promised to their father Abraham. Isn’t it interesting that much of the Middle East conflict we’re having today is really an unsettled sibling rivalry between half-brothers? How many problems could have been solved if Abraham wouldn’t have gone ahead of God? Little did he know that by short-circuiting the plan and trying to "help" God out, he was going to cause enormous problems for the world for thousands of years. It always causes problems when you try to get ahead of God.

We can trust God’s timing... He is never late. Psalm 37:7,8(LB)—Rest in the Lord; wait patiently for Him to act…don’t fret and worry—it only leads to harm. Do you remember the time when Jesus was asleep on the boat during a storm on the Sea of Galilee? What a great example of faith. His disciples were fretting, but Jesus was asleep. He was resting in faith; a literal, visual object lesson that God’s in control! It does no good to get uptight when you have to wait; whether you’re at peace or whether you’re in panic, you’re still going to have to wait. So stop worrying, and start trusting. Eccl. 3:11(GN)—God has set the right time for everything. Waiting on God is difficult, but essential. Delays teach us to trust God.

3. DON’T FAINT.
Numbers 14:2-4—All the Israelites grumbled against Moses… "If only we had died in Egypt!…We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt."

Things were not going according to the Israelites' plans. When life got hard after their great deliverance, they got discouraged. They were even ready to head back into slavery, because at least it was familiar. There are two phrases in these verses that describe discouragement—"if only" and "go back". They were second-guessing the decision to leave, wondering if they had made the wrong choice. When you are discouraged, you tend to idealize the past. They knew that Egypt was a land of suffering, torment, and torture for them…but at least it was predictable. But it was a bad idea to give up all they had gained.

I see this happening in marriage counseling all of the time. I’ll refer couples to counselors, and when changes don't take place as quickly as they want, when they realize there is pain involved in change, or when hidden emotions come to the surface, they become scared. And they retreat to their old ways of thinking and relating and reacting…their habitual ways of relating to each other. Their attitude is one of fear; "It wasn’t good…but I’m scared to death by what’s happening right now. Let’s go back to Egypt...and live in bondage." But that is not progress, and not what God wants for them. He is in the business of deliverance! God says that we are not to fear, fret or faint. The Israelites did the opposite, and roamed in the wilderness for 40 years.

Now, what do you do instead of fainting? Be persistent and pray. Gal. 6:9(Mof)—Let us never grow tired of doing what's right, for if we do not faint, we’ll reap a harvest at the right time. What you sow, you will reap. But notice that the verse says we will reap at the right time. You don't sow and then immediately reap. You don't plant a seed in the ground and then one minute later you have the fruit. There is a delay. This law of life says, you always reap in a season different from the season you have sown in. And so you sow the seed. and then you wait. And then you reap.

How do you be persistent? Luke 18:1 (JB)—always pray and not give up… you need to pray continually and not lose heart. Notice that there are two actions here: always pray, and don't give up. Calvin Coolidge said, "Nothing can take the place of persistence. Talent won’t. Nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not. Unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not. The world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent." Keep on going. Be persistent and pray. Ask God to help you have faith and not lose heart. Is. 40:31—They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

4. DON’T FORGET.
Ps. 106:7, 8, 13—When our fathers were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. Yet he saved them for his name’s sake to make his mighty power known. But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his counsel.

When you are in the middle of delay it is easy to forget about God’s faithfulness. As you read the story of the Exodus, it is almost comical what a short memory these people had. As soon as God did something for them, they immediately forgot it and began complaining about something else. But don't we do the same thing? We quickly forget all of the things that God has done for us. It will build your faith if you keep a prayer journal to write down your prayer requests and God's answers to them. What have you forgotten about God’s help in the past? How has He delivered you? You can trust Him to finish the work He has started.

There are over 7,000 promises in the Bible; so when you’ve got a problem, look for a promise. Ps. 103:2—Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits. You may say, "Rob, I’ve claimed a promise and I’m waiting on God. Why the delay? Is He listening? Is He ignoring me?" Have you considered the possibility that He might be waiting on you? Maybe you’re the problem. Maybe He wants you to change some unbelieving attitudes. Maybe you’re fearing, fretting, fainting, or forgetting.

Remember: God is never in a hurry. 2 Peter 3:8,9—But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. God is beyond time…He is not limited by it. His agenda is much bigger than yours or mine. He’s working off a bigger timetable. And so what do we do? We remember God’s promises. Hab. 2:3(LB)—These things won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, do not despair, for these things will surely come to pass. Just be patient! They will not be overdue a single day!

Friends, delays never destroy God’s purpose. Delays are a part of God’s purpose for your life. God’s preparing you and testing you. You see, a delay is not a denial. God has stretched my faith in a number of ways over the past ten years by different types of delays, and He continues to do so today. And if you look closely, you can see that God is using delays to shape your character and life.

So remember…don’t fear, don’t fret, don’t faint, and don’t forget. Which of these responses is holding back God’s blessings in your life? If you are fearful, go for God’s dream…and have faith. If you are fretting, stop worrying…and have faith. If you are fainting and ready to give up, remember God’s promises…and have faith. If you are forgetting, remember God’s deliverance in your life…and have faith. Don’t get discouraged, give up, or lose heart; even the delays in our lives are designed to build us into the people that God intends us to be.

This Sunday we continue our series with FACTOR #4—DEAL WITH DIFFICULTY GOD’S WAY. God wants us to learn from our trials, and grow us through them. Every storm is a school. Every trial is a teacher. Every experience is an education. And God uses every difficulty for our development. We are to focus on what God teaches us through the storm, not on the storm itself. He will develop our patience and character, and give us eternal rewards that far outweigh our pain. Join us this week for more insights into growing your faith.

Blessings,

Pastor Rob